Together Towards Death
by Sky Astor
Summary: The Twelfth Doctor's time is up. He returns to the TARDIS and waits for his body to regenerate when he gets an unexpected visit... Clara Oswald comes to say goodbye for the last time.


**A/N:** This is what I want Twelve's regeneration to be like... more or less. You get the idea. I thought I could turn it into a Whouffaldi fic.

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 **Together Towards Death**

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The Doctor stumbled along towards the TARDIS - his home, his sanctuary. His feet were numb, barely carried him and he thought they would give way with every next step. His grey curls were dishevelled and in the front a bit damp and coloured in red from the wound above his forehead.

Inside he steadied himself against the console, feeling completely powerless. If someone pushed him, even only lightly, he would fall over like a puppet.

At least he was safe.

The Time Lord could feel it, his time was up.

The wounds closed themselves up, the pain in his body started to fade away... The inner renewal started. But something was different this time, he frowned. There was a kind of... prickling inside his head that grew through and sent jolts through his whole brain and got worse and worse every second till it climaxed with a sharp sting, making him grimace in pain.

And then it was all back in his head... His memories. There wasn't only the name, Clara, in his head anymore... All the missing pieces were back in place. He remembered what she looked like - her beautiful, roundish face, her big brown eyes, her sweet voice... How she talked. And laughed. Who she was. It was all there. Everything. Clara, his Clara.

The Doctor wondered if she'd already returned to Trap Street... Or if she was still bouncing around time and space.

Although he knew she was not afraid and accepted her fate on the street, the thought that she had to go back saddened him. He'd rather she lived and had fun... even if without him.

Then he realised that the neural block had one positive aspect about it... It had prevented him from sadness and from missing her.

The missed her now, again.

Just as she's been missing him since they had last seen each other. However, she was stronger in this way, could handle it better...

The Doctor smiled faintly as his eyes travelled to his hand - a light golden glow formed around it... and then it disappeared again. The colour of immortality.

He was ready.

Something was tightening around his arms and chest... Hallucinations cause by the upcoming regeneration, he thought.

He discovered that it wasn't that when his eyes fell down and discovered a pair of arms that were embracing him.

"Clara?" he asked, a bit sleepily and stupefied because he was having a hard time not to faint.

He turned his head to the right side to discovered her, giving him a warm look and smile.

The honeyed feeling of pure love and happiness flooded him, beating the itching of the upcoming end. His features softened and turned into those of adoration, love... A look which he hardly ever gave her when she was looking. The last time he'd done it was when he kissed and held her hand before she went to face the Raven.

"You remember?¨ she asked, pleasantly shocked.

The Time Lord turned to her and hugged her tightly.

"I do, Clara, I do," he whispered into her ear as she was holding, supporting him because of his trembling knees.

"Since when?"

Clara wanted to cry, but she held her tears back. She didn't want him to see her cry. This shouldn't be sad... maybe only a little. She had a plan... this was her plan and she didn't think it sad. He was glad she was there with his in his last moments and that was what mattered most. And when he regenerates, all the strong and deep feelings will die with this incarnation, her Doctor... The next will remember, but he will be a different man, a new Doctor...

The Doctor slowly let go of her, then a jolt shot through his left feet that it buckled and he had to kneel down... Clara did the same with her arms around his waist.

No, not just yet. She was afraid.

His hands started to glow again, not properly, fully yet, but he couldn't stop it anymore. He gently cupped her face.

His hands were warm, very. And it was surprisingly calming, caressing her soul.

"How long?"

"Not very long, Clara," he said softly, his loving look was burying itself into her memory.

"Do you remember what I've said to you? In the Cloisters?" she asked smiling, just wanting to be sure.

The Doctor nodded and finally had the courage to do what he should have done all those years ago.

He leaned in and kissed her.

Their lips brushed, moved in unison slowly, gently, but with the passion of their deep love. His hearts were beating frantically in his chest, almost busting under that inflow of bliss. Her left hand was on his back, holding him against her own body, her right hand was on the back of his head, tangled up in his grey locks. Little moans were escaping from their lips, noses brushed occasionally... He was melting and savoured every moment of this.

When they parted, their smiling faces stayed close, foreheads touching and Clara's hand moved on top of his head where her fingers drowned in his curls as he massaged his skull.

"Clara, I wish,"

"Shut up," she interrupted him with a smile, shaking her head.

Always bad timing.

Supporting himself on the console, he stood up and she as well.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"For what?"

"For coming... For everything."

"Thank you too," she repeated.

It was time, he was sure then.

Just like last time, he took her hand and kissed it gently.

"Goodbye, my Clara," he whispered with a faint smile on his face that slowly started to glow with regeneration energy.

"Goodbye, Doctor," she whispered and with small steps, she walked backwards to the door.

Clara wanted to remember him like this - happy, satisfied, maybe a bit drunk from their kiss and with love in his eyes and a soft smile on his face.

The Doctor suspected where was going, of course. But he didn't say anything, didn't ask. He had no right to order her around. It was her choice. He only wanted her to be the last thing he sees before the end... And he did. In the exact moment when the main process of the regeneration started and drowned his face in a golden outburst of energy, she closed the door, knowing what to do.

xxx

The extraction chamber... A white room with a passage to her death.

She walked through and on to her place of death. But there is one important thing she did.

Clara kept her eyes fixed on the ground, occasionally wandering to the black bird frozen in flight. She didn't look at the Doctor - no, no. Not on his broken-hearted face, no.

And there was was - in front of the raven, again.

"Miss Oswald, are you ready?" came a question from the chamber.

"Yes."

"Ten seconds to death."

Dead already, Clara thought.

They weren't counting aloud, only in their heads.

Clara closed her eyes and imagined... Her kiss with the Doctor and how he stood there before she left, relieved, happy, smiling at her.

Three.

Two.

One.

Zero.

Time ran again and the raven flew into her stomach and she screamed because of the pain inside. In the last seconds, she relaxed and the Quantum Shade smoke came out of her mouth as she fell to the ground.

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 **A/N:** Thank you for reading.  
Hope you like it!


End file.
